History of Hindu Sculpture - Essay Example

Hindu Sculpture Introduction The emergence of Hinduism as a religion s back to the 4th century AD. The century saw a high resurgence of Hinduism (Mookerjee 3). The history of the culture can also be traced back of the Gupta Empire that considered Hinduism as their official religion during this time. Hinduism soon witnessed tremendous growth spreading to other parts of the region accompanied by the emergence of countless images of Hindus Gods and Goddess. This saw the sculpturing of adored images of Hindu gods being made in and put in temples as a sign of respect. The gods included Krishna, Vishnu, the Sun God, Shiva, and Durga goddess (Mookerjee 12). Hindu art is said to have been influenced mainly by spiritual thoughts and religion. Several of such sculptures can still be found in various Hindu Temples and museums. It is notable that most of the sculptures of the Hindu religion were made out of either hard rock or stone. However, it is reported that there are some differences and similarities in the Hindu sculptures presentation in a temple and a museum settings. This paper will compare the presentation and reception of the Hindu sculptures in a temple and a museum setting. As earlier stated, both Hindu temples and museums have sculptures of gods and goddesses, which have spiritual meanings as far as the religion is concerned. Mookerjee notes that the Hindu sculptures in both the temples and museums are given so much respect and worshiped as they are perceived as representations of supreme deities (14). Like human beings, they are washed, clothed, fed and offered some form of entertainments. In addition, all believers in this religion are expected to attend the temple in the morning so as to wake the sculptures of the gods and goddesses. They are washed dressed and fed like a respected king (Mookerjee 14). In the museum, they are taken good care of by the museum management just like is the case in the temples. Respect for the sculptures, however, comes in different forms in Hindu Temples and Museums. For instance, in a museum, the respects are mainly directed towards whoever did the sculptural work and the power (Priest 68). In this regard, the makers of the sculptures are given a lot of respect for their work. This is because the sculptures have historical significance as far as the museum is concerned. For instance, a museum gives people other than Hindus who do not get the opportunity to attend temples to have the notion of Shiva shown to them. This is quite different in a Hindu Temple, where respect for the sculpture is due to the power that the sculpture manifests, usually the spiritual power of Shiva (Priest 68). It is for this reason that it is worshiped and taken well care. Museums are usually known to be quiet places with fewer disturbances, as opposed to Temples that are composed of priests, congregants, and rituals. This usually gives viewers a chance to concentrate on watching the quality of the artistic work manifested on the sculpture. Temples, on the other hand, do not provide such opportunities for focusing on the quality of the artwork. This is because the congregants are only concerned about its spiritual significance and rituals (Kossak and Watts 16). The depiction of sculptures in a Temple is also said to differ from those of a museum in that the latter case provides people with the opportunity to watch Hindu sculptures from all over the world. This is not restricted to Hinduism (Mookerjee 29). This also provides viewers with the opportunity to view different sculptures from different religions in detail, which is certainly not the case in Temples, because a majority of people in the temple tend to be so busy with the spiritual aspects and do not get enough time to view the sculptures in detail. Furthermore, some of the sculptures may be in areas, which cannot easily be accessed by the viewers. In some instance, the sculptures in the Temples fade off without repair making it hard to view the details (Mookerjee 29). Viewing a sculpture in a Hindu temple is also quite different from seeing a statue in a museum gallery (Kossak and Watts 20). This is because, in museums, the sculptural images of the Hindu gods are made using luxurious jewels, and diaphanous cloths falling in fragile folds, as opposed to Hindu Temples, where they are shown covered with real cloths and festoons of flowers and the curved details of the statue are only supposed to be seen by temple priests The difference that is also evident between the sculptural depiction in temples and museums is that, in the former, almost every part of the building has at least a sculpture (Mookerjee 23). This provides opportunity for the congregants to see different images at the same time while inside or outside the temple. Museums, on the other hand, do not have sculptures erected everywhere. As such, images are usually seen in isolation (Mookerjee 23). This implies that anyone with an interest of viewing an image in a museum has to take some time watching an image before they can proceed to the next. Differences also exist with regard to how the pictures in Temples and Museums are installed (Priest 67). For instance, unlike in Temples where sculptures are emended on every part of the wall irrespective of position, installation in museums tends to follow a pattern. For instance, some pieces are mounted high in the wall, some found on a pedestal while others are mounted lower behind the glass. In addition, color plays an important role in museums, as opposed to Temples. For instance, white color may be used to depict a given feeling (Kossak and Watts 24). Priest notes that other colors are used as a way of unifying a particular artistic work shown in a given space (69). In some, colors are used to create mood such as being peaceful, remorseful, or glamorous among others. However, colors appear not to matter very much in Temples, since what matters is the spiritual significance of the sculpture to the Hindu religion. It is also noted that, that both Hindu Temples and museums have each sculpture erected upon a diagram, with a strict rule used to regulate the proportion of the sculpture. The canons, however, are different from the depiction of a variety of deities. What is also evident in both cases is that all the details regarding the size of the eye and nose is provided in the canons. The canons are said to still exist and are used to provide a peculiar life of Hindu sculpture, both in Temples and Museums (Kossak and Watts 34). Conclusion Hinduism is indeed among the oldest religions on earth as it datesss back to the 4th century. Its emergence was indeed very significant as far as art is concerned. This is because its coming into being saw the emergence of several Hindu Gods and Goddesses, which, as a result, brought about the notion of sculpturing these respected gods and goddess. The sculptures of the gods and goddess were later on introduced into Temples of worship and later on to the museums. However, it is evident that the depictions and reception of these sculptures in Temples differ widely. This is most based on their varying significance in Temples and in Museums. For instance, it is evident that the representation of the sculptures in Temples is mainly guided by spiritual significance of Shiva to the Hindu people. The representation of the sculptures in the museums, however, is mainly guided by their historical importance and respect to the artists. Work Cited Kossak, Steven M., & Watts, Edith W. The Art of south and Southeast Asia. New York, NY: The Metropolitan Museum of art. 2001 Print. Mookerjee, Ajit. Ritual Art of India. New Delhi: Inner Traditions, 1998 Print. Priest, Alan. Medieval Indian Sculpture. The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin. Pp. 67-73. Read More